DISC ONE:

EPISODE 1, The Birth Of Rock (Blues based Rock 1963-1970) 59:13
The rock revolution of the 1960s seen through the life and music of Jimi Hendrix.
The first doomed icon of rock, Hendrix was the synthesis of everything that had gone
before him and all that was to come. The Birth Of Rock also explores the influence of
rhythm & blues on a generation of British musicians such as The Rolling Stones, Cream
and The Who, and how the song-writing of Bob Dylan and studio developments of
The Beatles transformed the possibilities and ambitions of rock.

EPISODE 2, White Light, White Heat (Art Rock 1966-1980) 59:12
The story of how artistic and conceptual expression permeated rock. From the pop-art
multi-media experiments of Andy Warhol and the Velvet Underground to the sinister
gentility of Peter Gabriel's Genesis, White Light, White Heat traces how rock became
a vehicle for artistic ideas and theatrical performance. We follow Pink Floyd from the
fated art school genius of Syd Barrett through the global success of Dark Side of the Moon
to the ultimate rock theatre show, The Wall. Along the way, the film explores the
retro-futurism of Roxy Music and the protean world of David Bowie.

DISC TWO:

EPISODE 3, Blank Generation (Punk 1973-1980) 59:03
A tale of two cities, London and New York and the birth of punk. Each city created
a bastard child that marked the biggest and fundamental shift in popular music since
Elvis walked into Sun Studios. Blank Generation unpicks the relationship between
the bankrupt New York and the class and race-riven London of the mid-1970's and
explores the music of The Sex Pistols, The Clash, Ramones, Television, Patti Smith,
The Damned and Buzzcocks.

EPISODE 4, Never Say Die (Heavy Metal 1970-1991) 59:15
The story of the longest surviving and certainly the loudest genre of rock, heavy metal.
With no sign of disappearing, metal has been the most controversial and misunderstood
of all rock genres. Emerging at the tail end of the hippy dream from the rust belt of
industrial England, heavy metal would go on to secure the most loyal fan base of all.
With Black Sabbath as the undisputed Godfathers, we follow their highs and lows,
and, along the journey, meet Deep Purple, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden and Metallica.

DISC THREE:

EPISODE 5, We Are The Champions (Stadium Rock 1965-1993) 59:02
We Are The Champions follows the development of some the biggest names in Rock,
among them Queen, Bruce Springsteen, The Police and Dire Straits and shows how,
through events such as Live Aid and the rise of MTV, rock achieved a global influence
on culture and politics. The film concludes in the early 90s, as U2 effectively brought
the era to a close by reinventing the big rock show so completely, that fifteen years later
most major rock tours are still pale facsimiles.

EPISODE 6, Left Of The Dial (Alternative Rock 1980-1994) 58:54
The rise of alternative rock in the USA. From its early underground days where bands like
Black Flag drew inspiration from the DIY ethos of punk, Left Of The Dial traces the history
of the network of fans, clubs and fanzines that sustained the scene and launched the careers
of bands like REM, The Pixies and Hüsker Dü. The film takes a fresh look at the explosion
of the Seattle scene, culminating in the success of Nirvana's 'Nevermind' and the tragic loss
of Kurt Cobain, an artist whose triumph and tragedy continues to cast an inescapable shadow.

DISC FOUR:

EPISODE 7, What The World Is Waiting For (Indie 1980-2007) 88:57
The story of British indie, beginning with The Smiths, the archetypal indie group.
The film follows The Stone Roses as the heirs to the indie crown, Suede's dark sexuality
and the media saturation of Brit-pop's Blur v Oasis. What The World Is Waiting For
explores how indie ultimately lost its once cherished intimacy and integrity in front of
250,000 fans at Oasis's Knebworth spectacle in 1996 and how, by returning to its roots
in clubs and bars (and even front rooms) with bands such as Franz Ferdinand,
The Libertines and The Arctic Monkeys, indie became respectable again.